The year old Yogi Adityanath government is set for go for major revamping as plans are afoot to carry out massive reshuffle in the government as well as in organisation so that party could present a new look before the 2019 lok Sabha elections.
With the UP BJP and national leadership contemplating to hold at least one public rally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi every month in the state while the BJP president Amit Shah to hold review meetings of four lok Sabha constituencies every fortnight, the state BJP has started gearing up to meet the challenges.
A high level meeting of the state office bearers was held in this regard at the state party office here on Sunday while another meeting with the central leadership is expected later this week in New Delhi.
Sources in the party said that the ministry reshuffle could take place at the end of this month or early June. “Around 12 ministers could be dropped while around 20 could be inducted to balance the caste and regional equation for the government,” sources said adding that some ministers who are facing corruption charges would be axed.
The reshuffle has also been necessitated by the coming together of two caste-based parties — Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party. The perception about the Yogi Adityanath government being dominated by the upper castes strengthened after the victory of Samajwadi Party candidates, both OBCs, in the two lok Sabha bypolls recently.
“We have 47 ministers in the Council of Ministers and can expand it to 60. Many of the 13 vacancies could be filled by OBC leaders. There is no Dalit-Jatav face in the Cabinet and we may bring in one such leader. Besides some of the leaders from the organisation including those elected to the legislative council recently, could be inducted in the ministry,” a BJP leader said.
A prominent backward leader and Minister of State (Independent Charge) Swatantra Dev Singh, could be promoted to Cabinet rank while backward leaders like MlA from Agra, GS Dharmesh, could be inducted into the Council of Ministers. Besides, a backward leader from BJP’s ally Apna Dal could also be inducted into the Cabinet while the party’s other ally, Suheldeo Bharatiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar, may get a better portfolio.
A Yadav face could also be inducted, with the name of Faizabad MlA Ram Chandra Yadav doing the rounds. “ BJP fielded 11 Yadav in the 2017 polls out of which nine won and one, Girish Chandra Yadav, was inducted as minister of state. Harnath Singh Yadav has been elected to Rajya Sabha. These moves are aimed at wooing the Yadav and Jatav vote bases of SP and BSP respectively,” the BJP leader said.
Performing ministers such as Minister of State for Rural Development (independent charge) Mahendra Singh may be promoted to Cabinet rank.
Meanwhile, the Yogi Adityanth government is also set to nominate around 350 chairpersons, vice-vice chairpersons and members to different Boards and Corporations in the state, which is lying vacant for the past over one year after the BJP came to power in the state.
“The government will soon take the call to fill all the nominated posts in the government organisations with giving the organisation priority in these posts,” a senior BJP leader said.
However, the dalits and the backwards would be given majority of these posts.